Who benefits from policy changes?

23 ƒ Enforcement of forest policies is not seen as a funding priority in the Philippines. The DENR has limited field personnel with one forest guard for every 4 000 hectares of forest land. Similarly, only two to three personnel supervise tens of thousands of hectares of protected areas Castillo 2008. ƒ Although there is some progress in Myanmar in terms of meeting targets in the development of protected areas, forest plantations and community forests, the lack of ongoing monitoring means most actions are implemented on an ad hoc basis and a systematic review of forestry policy is necessary Thaung 2008. ƒ Impacts of other sectors on forestry, in India for example see Box 2.6. Box 2.6. Impacts of other sectors on forest policy implementation in India The forestry sector is impacted upon by policies in other sectors including agriculture, tribal welfare, rural development, panchayati raj and tourism. Forestry is also affected by revenue and customs, the judiciary and the police through mandates to collect taxes and levies, prevent forest offences and prosecute offenders. Current emphasis on agricultural intensification may complement forestry sector objectives through implementation of agroforestry and farm forestry. At the same time, education has received an increased budget allocation and with more emphasis on school enrolment and better education, demand for paper should rise. The recent boom in infrastructure and housing will also require substantial inputs of wood. According to the housing policy for the 11th Five Year Plan 2007- 2012, 26 million housing units are to be constructed and with the addition of a backlog of over 22 million housing units, demand for some 50 million m 3 of timber is expected. Source: Matta 2008. Forest policy is frequently poorly implemented because of field-level issues including high demand for forest land and forest resources, limited sources of alternative employment and low human resources capacity. Poor governance and low demand for alternative outcomes, i.e., greater production of environmental services, has also played a part and the impacts of other sectors on forestry are as prevalent as ever see Box 2.7. Box 2.7. In Indonesia forestry is defeated by mining Currently, there are 13 mining companies that operate in protected forests. This special treatment is legitimized by a 2004 government regulation, despite the companies operations being in violation of a forestry regulation that completely bans all mining activities in protected forests. Protected forests are meant to be free of all commercial exploitation and exploration activities. However, the government insists that the 13 companies are permitted to continue operations because they began extraction before the regulation was introduced. However, the passing of a new decree, announced on 29 February 2008 by Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro, will likely cause the countrys forests to bleed to death. A new presidential decree might soon be introduced allowing other mining companies to apply for similar treatment in return for cash. The move shows poor interministerial coordination and a lack of the goodwill needed to protect the countrys forests. The decree also questions the sense in implementing the National Rehabilitation Movement GERHAN project, which was launched in 2003 to restore 5 million hectares of forest by 2009. Source: Jakarta Post 11 March 2008. Many of the problems associated with forestry may be seen as symptoms of the state of forestry development and where one or more of the following conditions prevails, it is possible that reversals in trends of forest exploitation will be seen: ƒ Forest scarcity or scarcity of related goods and services has been acutely perceived, either locally or nationally where governance is weak it is possible that even if this condition is satisfied, movement towards stabilization of forest cover will not be seen; ƒ Pressure has been removed from forest resources as a result of the availability of alternative sources of employment and income; or 24 ƒ Pressure has been removed from forest resources as a result of widespread agricultural intensification. The effectiveness of policy and institutions define to a large extent the point at which it is economically and politically feasible to turn away from exploitative forest management and towards long-term goals. Although there are favourable conditions for successful policy implementation to take hold, one of the most challenging tasks is to find better ways to ensure effective implementation of forest policies. For the Asia-Pacific region, Gilmour et al. 2005 suggest the following considerations: ƒ avoid over-regulation; ƒ security of access, and use and management rights – although not necessarily ownership – are crucial; ƒ minimize transaction costs; ƒ build the capacity of stakeholders to implement policies; ƒ ensure benefits; ƒ ensure consistencies between policies and legal instruments; ƒ support accountability; ƒ provide enough funding and staffing; ƒ implement adaptive management; and ƒ build supportive legislation and institutions. These recommendations could easily also be listed as components of good governance. In many countries governance remains weak, however, and it is unclear at what point impetus to improve forest management will strengthen or the extent to which a turnaround in forest management will be active and abrupt as opposed to passive and gradual. Section 5 provides an overview of the status and trends in governance in the region and provides a clearer picture of what can be expected in the years to 2020.

3. Status and key trends in forest legislation

Legislation can have many purposes: to regulate, to authorize, to provide funds, to sanction, to grant, to declare or to restrict. Countries in the Asia-Pacific region have passed various laws to guide forestry. As a policy instrument, legislation provides legal support for policy implementation. The fundamental task of forest legislation is to provide a basis and long-term framework for forest management, conservation and development; and to assist in achieving the basic goals for forests and forest management and governance. Rights and responsibilities, prohibitions, monitoring, conflict resolution, rewards and fines may also be included. While legislation is one instrument to achieve policy objectives, there are many other instruments that are influencing forests and forestry, such as: certification and labelling, education, awareness raising, capacity building and technical support. Financial mechanisms e.g. taxes, incentives and subsidies, direct public investment, regulatory instruments e.g., monitoring, standards and auditing, demonstration projects, guidelines, codes of practice, and research and technology development may also be used to support policy implementation. 3.1. Forest legislation: old and outdated? A main concern regarding legislation is whether it remains relevant under rapidly changing circumstances. As depicted in the previous section, the region is now placing more emphasis on ecosystem protection and rehabilitation, community participation and devolution, while also beginning to address climate change issues through forests and forestry. Is legislation sufficiently up to date to respond to the new demands?